The singles wins are a goal Tate said his team set out to achieve Tuesday.

“Winning five singles matches builds up to our second match at Maiden,” coach Tate said. “When we play these guys, they don’t quit. There is a lot of fight in these guys. When their matches are over, they are out there hitting balls. We’re not done with Maiden, yet, for sure.”

The Blue Devils, who are without No. 1 Zack Huffman due to a shoulder injury, moved their No. 2 through No. 5 players up in the lineup.

Maiden (3-1, 2-1) was able to win matches in No. 6 singles with Hunter Ardery and No. 3 doubles with the team of Ardery and Stephen Lichtenwalner.

“Obviously, this would have been a lot tougher match than it already was with Zack (Huffman) in it,” said N-C coach Tate. “We don’t know if Zack will be back this season, but we play these guys again.”

Newton-Conover continues its run for a third-straight state championship Wednesday when it hosts Watauga.

“We’re in a build-up-to-playoffs mode right now,” Tate said. “We are trying to get better and get ready because we know we have matches with Shelby and Salisbury in the playoffs. That’s what we’re trying to build towards when we are done with our conference matches.”